NEWS STORIES

SEPTEMBER 2011

Sept. 30: Corn supplies for the coming year are higher than previously estimated, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Grain Stocks report released today. With the total carry-out estimate revised to include an additional 200 million bushels more than the Sept. 12 estimate, this new data indicates that carry-out stocks, coupled with an estimated 12.497 billion bushels of production in 2011, will provide more than 13.6 billion bushels …

Sept. 30: On this final day of the 2011 fiscal year, the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Board readies itself to seat new members and officers on October 1. When the 2011 Executive Committee steps down, NCGA President Bart Schott will assume chairmanship of the Corn Board, and First Vice President Garry Niemeyer will step into the presidency. The Off the Cob podcast series sat down with Schott today …

Sept. 29: As the fiscal year comes to an end, the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Board gets ready to seat new members and officers on October 1. When the 2011 Executive Committee steps down, NCGA Chairman Darrin Ihnen will retire from service following three outstanding years of leadership as first vice president, president, and, finally, Corn Board chairman. The Off the Cob podcast series sat down with Ihnen …

Sept. 28: As the fiscal year comes to an end, the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Board gets ready to seat new members and officers on October 1. At this time, three current Corn Board members will retire from the board: Daryl Haack, Jerry Larson and Dave Nelson. The Off the Cob podcast series caught up with each retiring Corn Board member to discuss what each learned and experienced …

Sept. 28: As the fiscal year comes to an end, the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Board gets ready to seat new members and officers on October 1. At this time, three current Corn Board members will retire from the board: Daryl Haack, Jerry Larson and Dave Nelson. The Off the Cob podcast series caught up with each retiring Corn Board member to discuss what each learned and experienced …

Sept. 28: As the fiscal year comes to an end, the National Corn Growers Association’s Corn Board gets ready to seat new members and officers on October 1. At this time, three current Corn Board members will retire from the board: Daryl Haack, Jerry Larson and Dave Nelson. The Off the Cob podcast series caught up with each retiring Corn Board member to discuss what each learned and experienced …

Sept. 27: The National Corn Growers Association mourns the loss of industry leader and past chairman David Meyers, who passed away this week. Meyer, who served as president of the National Corn Development Foundation, NCGA’s former research and education arm, leaves a rich legacy of service to his fellow farmer and a positive, energetic presence that will be truly missed. “I remember David from even prior to my tenure …

Sept. 26: The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported Monday afternoon that the 2011 corn harvest is 15 percent complete, one percentage point below the five-year average but lower than last year’s harvest by 11 points. At the same time, the corn condition is rated at 80 percent fair-to-excellent. “This is such an important and busy time for our growers,” said NCGA President Bart Schott, who farms near Kulm, N.D. …

Sept. 23: The National Corn Growers Association today applauded the bipartisan work of Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), John Thune (R-SD), Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Dick Lugar (R-IN) to introduce legislation that will create the Aggregate Risk and Revenue Management (ARRM) Program.The bill is designed to simplify, consolidate and streamline existing commodity programs that were authorized as part of the 2008 farm bill. “We greatly appreciate the senators’ work to …

Sept. 23: Field Notes opened the farm gate this spring and provided followers with an inside look at the activities of several farmers from a variety of geographical areas. Today, we caught up with Maryland grower Chip Bowling as he drove his new grain truck home from Missouri to discuss what he is seeing this harvest. Bowling, who was approaching Lexington, Ky., when we spoke, noted that new technology …

Sept. 22: Findings of two national surveys about food and how it is grown and raised were released during “The Food Dialogues,” a town hall-style discussion presented by the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance. The surveys focused separately on the opinions, attitudes and questions consumers and farmers/ranchers have about the current and future state of how food is grown and raised in the United States. Results reveal that …

Sept. 21: Steve Ebke, chair of the National Corn Growers Association’s Production and Stewardship Action Team and a farmer from Nebraska, testified today before the House Transportation & Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment. The hearing focused on the economic importance and financing challenges of the nation’s inland waterways system. “The U.S. agricultural sector is the largest user of the freight transportation network, accounting for nearly one-third of …

Sept. 21: Since the February Daytona 500, Americans with questions about ethanol’s performance characteristics have been getting answers at NASCAR races nationwide. Every driver from Dale Jr. to Clint Bowyer, in all three NASCAR racing series has been running on a 15 percent ethanol blend. Today, NASCAR confirmed what millions of viewers have seen by officially announcing mid-level ethanol blends have now demonstrated their high-performance for more than one …

This piece is an installment of series launched this spring featuring interviews with executives from organizations representing corn growers at the state level on the specific issues affecting their growers.Sept. 20: Today, Off the Cob speaks with Texas Corn Producers Board Executive Director David Gibson about the devastating drought that has severely impacted corn growers across his state this growing season. As water pumping restrictions on the high plains …

Sept. 19: The National Corn Growers Association welcomes Natalie Cook, the organization’s new office manager for the Washington office. In this position, Cook serves as the assistant to NCGA Vice President of Public Policy Jon Doggett. “Natalie brings not only a strong background in legislative issues and organization to the position but also a deep-rooted passion for agriculture,” Doggett said. “Her strengths will complement those of the staffers already …

Sept. 19: National Corn Growers Association President Bart Schott released the following statement in response to President Obama’s Economic Growth and Deficit Reduction Plan: “NCGA strongly supports the effort to get our federal budget under control and the need for shared sacrifice in order to achieve an equitable, balanced approach. We appreciate the recognition in President Obama’s plan of how important reliable effective risk management tools are to farmers …

Sept. 19: This week marks National Farm Safety and Health Week. This annual promotion, which has been proclaimed by every president since 1944, highlights the importance of exercising proper caution on farms. To commemorate this week as harvest begins, the National Corn Growers Association has posted farm safety information on its website, featuring a grain bin safety video and links to other resources providing on-farm safety information. …

Sept. 16: As summer draws to a close, members of Congress have returned to Washington after their month-long District work period. With only a few short months left until the end of the year, the legislative calendar will be extremely busy for members and their staff. “Immediately upon return from August recess, Congress was faced with two problems,” National Corn Growers Association Vice President of Public Policy Jon Doggett …

Sept. 15: While harvest progresses throughout much of the Corn Belt, a select group of growers are ramping up their efforts to become the most effective leaders possible through a new National Corn Growers Association training program. NCGA’s Advanced Leadership Training Program, sponsored by Syngenta, launched its second class this week in Greensboro, N.C. The session helps qualified and motivated candidates finely hone their leadership skills and prepared them …

Sept. 15: While harvest progresses throughout much of the Corn Belt, a select group of growers are ramping up their efforts to become the most effective leaders possible through a new National Corn Growers Association training program. NCGA’s Advanced Leadership Training Program, sponsored by Syngenta, launched its second class this week in Greensboro, N.C. The session helps qualified and motivated candidates finely hone their leadership skills and prepared them …

Sept. 14: Field Notes opened the farm gate this spring and provided followers with an inside look at the activities of several farmers from a variety of geographical areas. Yesterday evening, we caught up with Illinois grower Tom Martin to see talk about his perceptions of harvest following Monday’s release of revised U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates of crop condition, yield and acreage. In the crop production report issued …

By Garry Niemeyer, NCGA First Vice President Sept. 14: In recent years, many farmers have seen good prices and plentiful crops, allowing us to purchase some much needed new equipment. However, we know that tough times usually follow and there will be years we have to make do with what we have, not matter how much we need to replace it. Our nation’s infrastructure is in some wayslike …

Sept. 14: As the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy and Poultry held a hearing today examining the availability of feed and its effect on the livestock industry, the National Corn Growers Association submitted a statement for the record that reminded critics we don’t need to choose between using corn for feed or fuel. “Corn fuels nations around the world, as a food ingredient, a feedstock, a fuel, a …

Sept. 13: The National Corn Growers Association and BASF Corporation will again award five $1,000 scholarships to undergraduate and graduate students pursuing a degree in an agriculture-related field during the 2012-13 school year. “NCGA understands that, to remain successful as an industry, it must focus on agricultural education and fighting the rural ‘brain drain’,” said Brandon Hunnicutt, NCGA’s Grower Services Action Team Chair. “This program is an important …

Sept. 12: The United States is still on track to produce the third-largest corn crop on record, estimated to total 12.5 billion bushels of corn, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture reports released this morning. Despite U.S. corn farmers facing several major weather events that negatively impacted much of the production acreage, causing national average yield estimates to drop to 148.1 bushels per acre, the world corn stocks projection …

Sept. 12: The National Corn Growers Association today unveiled the Agriculture Disaster Assistance Program, a commodity title proposal for the 2012 farm bill that will modify and replace the existing Average Crop Revenue Election Program and provide a more effective and responsive safety net for growers. “Responding to a charge by our voting delegates to investigate transitioning direct payments into programs that allow producers the ability to mitigate risk, …

Sept. 9: Field Notes opened the farm gate this spring and provided followers with an inside look at the activities of several farmers from a variety of geographical areas. Today, this series visited with Illinois grower Tom Martin to see how harvest is progressing thus far on his farm and to gain perspective into the crop in his area before Monday’s release of revised U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates …

Sept. 9: The U.S. Department of Agriculture is providing more than $11.6 million in grants to more than 900 agricultural producers and rural small businesses to implement renewable energy and energy efficiency measures. While all of these grants aim to improve rural economies, many will directly impact corn farmers as a portion of the funds are designated for the installation of blender pumps, which allow customers the choice to …

Sept. 8: The National Corn Growers Association’s 2011 Social Media Training Program will feature a webinar next week that will offer a look at how mobile applications can help make social media manageable. The program is generously supported by Pioneer Hi-Bred, a DuPont Business, and is the ninth of 12 free hour-long online learning sessions underway monthly through 2011. “As a farmer, my days are far too busy to …

Sept. 8: Now, all of the information, news and updates available on the National Corn Growers Association Website are available on-the-go. A new, smartphone-friendly mobile version of the NCGA Website launched today, allowing visitors to access the main sites information in a faster, more streamlined manner better suited to current cell-phone technology. “Research shows that, like the majority of Americans, farmers are accessing the Internet through a Smartphone increasingly …

Sept. 7: Today, the National Corn Growers Association and the American Soybean Association brought together key industry stakeholders to start a discussion about how to best begin construction of a framework for addressing biotech events and impacts on end use markets. Acknowledging that all parts of the value chain share a common goal of an uninterrupted flow of corn, soybeans and technology, attendees shared ideas and insights on finding …

Sept. 6: Now more than ever, it is critical the Congress ratify the pending U.S.-Colombian Free Trade Agreement and ensure that U.S. farmers compete on a level playing field against foreign suppliers set to make significant headway into the country’s feed market. Traditionally a Top 10 export market for U.S. corn, Colombian corn imports have eroded substantially over the past four years and stand to further decline in light …

Sept. 6: As growers gear up for this year’s corn harvest, Hurricane Irene was the latest in a number of weather-related challenges that have affected acreage, yield and corn condition across the nation’s corn fields. 2011 has definitely been a year to test the resilience of the American farmer, the National Corn Growers Association reports. “We had delayed planting and flooding in the upper Midwest, we lost acreage to …

Sept. 2: Field Notes opened the farm gate this spring and provided followers with an inside look at the activities of several farmers from a variety of geographical areas. Today, this series visited with Maryland grower Chip Bowling to find out how Hurricane Irene impacted his Chesapeake Bay farm. “Where I am faired pretty well compared to many of my neighbors,” said Bowling. “We had wind gusts up with …

Sept. 1: As growers head to the fields to begin harvest, the National Corn Growers Association announces that harvest forms for the 2011 National Corn Yield Contest are now available online. While the harvest information form deadline of Dec. 1 may seem distant, entrants are invited to report online at their earliest convenience to facilitate the expedient processing of information. “As growers in many areas are already beginning final …